Cracked pads and weary paws brought her wandering away from Seracia. She had managed to escape along with another slave from amenti during the war, and she knew that sooner or later Canttina would come looking for her. But as long as she kept on the move those chances would slim right? Seracia after all was closer to Valhalla, so that's where Canttina or the other Amentians would go to look first. Avalon had been careful to cover her tracks as well as her scent, it wasn't like you could really define her scent anyway...her coat was matted, dirty, and covered in blood and dirt and other grime from her locked up life. There was no way she could be tracked so easily. She looked warily around, as if expecting her captors to come jumping out of the trees and bushes...but to her relief, there was no scent of Amenti. And she knew their scent well. The girl wondered exactly how much time had passed since her capture, till now. She was at least 31" now, not bigger then Canttina yet but she figured by her second year or sooner she would be at her full 39" of height. Exhausted from her arduous journey, she chose to lie down underneath a willow whose branches would give her some cover. Resting her body against the rough bark, she leaned her right shoulder into it and brought up her left forepaw to lick tenderly at her cracked pads. She had been afraid to seek medical attention from anyone, afraid that they would turn on her like her captor had the first day they met. Seemingly nice until the devil came out and nearly broke her left hind leg. Which, to her, seemed to be healing rather slowly...without medical attention, it would heal slow. She continued to walk with a limp, cuts still on her thigh and the bite marks where Canttina had grabbed her. She remembered everything, and she doubted she would forget the pain of being stolen from her family and what it felt like to no longer be able to trust people...Her mind flicked to her family, the last one she had seen was Odette...and Avalon hoped that Canttina had not gotten to her. Hoped that Odette and the other siblings were doing well and safe, far away from Amenti. Talk like this

It was rare for Anthem Destruction to wander from home, and so today would be a day unlike other. The handsome male was intent on exploring, and getting used to the land that had been his home for close to a season now. A happy smile lingered on the man's face as he practically frolicked across the vast expanse of terrain, tail waving like a banner behind him. It was only when the sight of another caught his attention that he stopped, head jerking in the stranger's direction somewhat hesitantly to stare. The brute's movements were awkward as he shifted, turning to face the strange from a safe distance. Instinctively he would creep forward to get a better look at the wolf lying under the tree, but as soon as he did so, he froze in his steps. The girl looked rather scary, and his eyes widened as he examined her. Her stench was strange, mixed with blood and dirt and not at all pleasant. Nothing like his siblings! And she was rather big and intimidating. A soft whimper fell from his lips at the mere sight of her, passing judgment rather quickly in the best way he could. He was not a good judge of personality, but merely recognized when someone looked good or had something strikingly off about them. He didn't know this girl had come from a battle, but only that he ought to steer clear from her in case she tried to harm him. "Y-you hurt?" he called out softly, tail curling between his hind legs. Was she a good wolf, and just hurt? He didn't know and was too frightened to approach further.

Avalon

After a few minutes of trying to soothe her cracked and burning front paw pads, Avalon wanted to try and clean off her hind pads, but her body ached too much to make the attempt. She was exhausted, hungry, and feeling empty. She wanted to be thr vibrant young girl she used to be before she got stolen to Amenti, but she felt that her innocence was lost and that there was no turning back. She sighed heavily as she placed her head on the ground, forepaws on either side of her head as watery eyes gazed at the fallen leaves ahead of her. Everything here seemed so quiet...so peaceful...so...relaxing. She wished she could stay here, but she wasn't sure if she could stay for long. After all, someone would surely find her and either chase her away or send her back to Amenti. In fact, she didn't even know she was in Ludicael pack lands. She had never been this far before in her life, and she never got the chance to learn the other pack scents. Her eyes drifted closed, and she wanted to badly to fall asleep...but she knew she couldn't just not. Not in the open for fear of potential pursuers. She wished there was a place to hide from them, her life was torturous there and she never wanted to go back...not as a slave anyway. Though she did want to go back for Kestrel, to free her before something awful happened. As her ming twisted into those thoughts about her Snow rogue cousin, a voice would break through into her ears and she would then whip her head up, eyes showing complete fear as she struggled to stand. Though amber eyes fell upon a male wolf, standing far from her and appearing afraid as well. She felt guarded, though at the same time she too felt confused...her heart pounded at the possibility that he might turn on her and attack her, and she in no condition to fight. With a slow nod, she would answer. "Y-yes..." That was all the poor girl was able to murmur for fear of giving too much information like she had to Canttina. She hoped though, that she could trust him...after all, he looked just as afraid of her as she felt towards him. Hopefully, nothing would go wrong...right?

Anthem Destruction was not a typical man, and even his distant golden gaze made this apparent. It was strange and empty, as though searching for something he was never capable of finding. He examined her as she looking up from lapping gingerly at her paws, wondering what had happened to her. He was oh so oblivious to the fact that she could get in trouble for being here without permission, and he certainly had no ability to give her permission. Somewhat shakily he took a few more steps forward, tail still curled under him and pressed against his belly. "Oh," he said simply, brows furrowing. "I... I help?" Anthem had no idea what he might help with, but he hoped something! His curiosity had been piqued, and she didn't look threatening, but very sad and scared instead. It was something he felt often, and so he felt strongly inclined to comfort her and help her.

A small whimper would escape past slightly parted lips as the male drew closer. She was afraid for her life, though the longer she kept her gaze on him the more she realized that he seemed as equally afraid of her as she did him. On closer inspection, she noticed his tail seemed to be tightly pressed against his belly, just like hers was pressed tightly to her own body. She watched him carefully as he neared her, and the longer she watched him the more she felt that he was no threat to her. Her ears slowly perked up as his words reached her, "I...I help?" With a slight tilt of her head, she was hesitant to respond...but then her leg and other wounds would throb with dull aches, and then her stomach would make a loud rumble, reminding her of the starved hunger that plagued her emaciated body. Her ears would flatten to her head, looking away from the male for a brief moment as she stared at her paws. Pressing cracked lips together, she would turn back to look at him, a look in her eyes that seemed to internally call for help though she didn't voice it. "Is...is there f-food nearby..? I'm hungry..." her words came out in somewhat of a murmur, at just barely over a year old she had never asked someone else for food before. She had always been the one to hunt for her little sister Odette and her other siblings since her parents had been scarce. And now, she was the one in need of help. In her condition, she couldn't hunt for herself...not yet at least. Shortly after speaking she realized that that had been the most that she had spoken to anyone since her enslavement. And with a deep sigh, her lungs would become slightly pained which caused her to flinch. Her body curling slightly tighter as her leg throbbed. "I'm hurting..." absentmindedly, mumbled words had spilled from her lips. The first time ever that she would voice her pain. Talk like this

If only this young girl knew! Anthem Destruction was a simple man who was incapable of harming another -- at least on purpose. He didn't like seeing his family unhappy or in pain, and the feeling seemed to apply to this wolf too, though she was a stranger to him. A slight frown graced the his gentle features as she continued to watch him warily. She seemed in so much pain, and he wanted badly to help her, but he didn't have any idea how. In response, his own ears flattened against his head, a whimper escaping his lips. The girl's eyes were pleading and sad and he continued to creep forward. He'd learned at a young age, when his family had realized just how different he really was, to not talk to strangers very often. It was better for him to not be overwhelmed with confusion, or worse -- hurt, or killed. And he didn't have to be told; he generally preferred keeping to himself, as strangers often confused and frustrated him. She asked if there was any food nearby, and he shrugged, his eyes growing wide. "I dunno," he said simply. He could not hunt for himself, not real food at least. He had found some small rodents before but it wasn't exactly an easy feat for him, and he mostly depended on his siblings for nourishment. His gaze drifted to her hind left leg, examining the injury quietly. It looked very bad! If only Symphony was here, she could help! But the man was flooded with empathy and he would nearly crawl forward to rest beside her. "I help?" he inquired softly again, watching her, not wanting her to be angry with him. But he leaned forward anyway, his tongue lapping tenderly at her leg, cleaning the wound; it was something he'd learned from his sister, and he knew that he always liked the touch of another when he was hurt or feeling badly.

Wary amber eyes watched the approach of the young man. Though she was hesitant to let him near, she felt that she didn't have a reason to fear him. He seemed much different then other wolves she had come across, even though it wasn't many. A small yelp would involuntarily breach her lips when he approached and began to lick her wounds. Although she had heard his soft offer to help, she had not stopped him from approaching her. Was it that she actually wanted help? She began to think that maybe that was the case, after all, she had been around much worse. And he didn't seem like he intended on attacking her...nor did it seem that he would have the capabilities of attacking her. Though she could always be wrong. As his tongue swept repeatedly over her damaged leg, she felt herself relaxing. Her head rested lightly on her forepaws, ears half flattened towards his direction. Though she still felt somewhat tense, the majority of her body was relaxed. Turning to glance at him, amber eyes would soften slightly as she gazed at the gentle warrior. "Th-thank you..." she would murmur, not afraid but with gratitude. She could feel her sense of fear slowly melt away. Maybe there was hope for her after all... "My name is Avalon. What's your name?" She wondered who this male was, wondered who it was that offered his help so selflessly to a stranger. And though she had been afraid, he seemed to have been equally afraid. It was evident in the way he held himself, his tucked tail and his flattened ears, and if not that then certainly the uncertainty that had showed in his eyes. Talk like this

His movements were slow and careful; he knew strangers were not always nice, but this girl seemed hurt and he wanted to help. A man with better judgment would have called for help -- his sister Symphony was a wonderful healer, who could help much more than he could -- but all he could think about was what to do for her in this instance. He didn't know hardly a thing about healing, even about cleaning wounds, but he was simply mirroring what his siblings did when he hurt himself. Anthem had never been attacked or seriously injured, but they still had tended to his minor scrapes and bruises. Anthem was oblivious to the fact that she had been injured by another, was unaware that her fear stemmed from something terrible that had happened to her. He, too, knew fear, but in an entirely different way. If only he could understand what she had gone through. She thanked him, and he shook his head. "No, no," he murmured, pausing briefly to peer at her with a confused expression. "No need to thank. You hurt. I just help." He wasn't using to receiving gratitude, nor giving it -- it was a strange concept to him, when all he was doing was exactly what he would want his brothers and sisters to do if he was hurt. "Anthem." He named himself quickly and then continued to lap delicately at her injured leg. "Fall?" He would question what happened softly, curious as to how this had happened.